Broken Willow
by Quicksilver
Summary: A divergence. In FY, Nuriko suspects the mirror Miaka is not what she seems. But what if he hadn't, and views Miaka as his enemy? Broken Willow features Nuriko as a bad-ass.
1. Prelude

Quicksilver's Quill Offers:  
Broken Willow  
standard disclaimers  
mbsilvana@yahoo.com  
  
Prelude:  
  
"Angry, Nuriko? Why? I mean, it's ridiculous- your attraction to Hotohori. You're a man."   
With those words, his world was turned upside down. He looked over at Hotohori and saw shock and loathing in the beautiful Emperor's eyes. His lips trembled as the words tripped unheeded from his tongue, confirming Miaka's bitchy announcement. "You're so mean! You told them my secret!" He picked up his skirts and darted into the woods, tears streaming down his cheeks.  
He ran as far as he could, then further still. Finally he collapsed beside a stream, his lungs burning. Looking into the stream he almost screamed in frustration. He had been working so hard for the last year to make Hotohori love him, and it was all undone by her. The stupid Suzaku no miko.  
His reflection stared back at him, and all he could see was how perfect he looked- exactly the way he pictured Kourin would have looked had she lived to be eightteen. He stared deeply into the river, and for the first time since his sister had died, wondered if he was doing the right thing. He'd hurt so many people by his deception- his parents, his brother, the other princesses, and now Hotohori. And now, looking into the water, he wondered who he was. There was no Ryuuen.  
He wiped the remnants of his makeup off on his sleeve, and braided his hair away from his face. Damn her. If it wasn't for her, he could still be in the court, content in his role.  
He tried to repress the sense of betrayal he felt at Miaka's cruel words, but was unable to. For a while, he had felt that they might actually become friends. He remembered her standing in his doorway, holding out a pale stone as a gesture of her goodwill. Shattered again. By now he should expect life to be cruel. In a fit of anger, he slammed his fist into the reflection that gazed back at him, causing the cool surface of the water to shatter, leaving behind only distorting ripples.  
"Atashi no baka!" he yelled, then suddenly the tears halted. Atashi? he wondered. I am Kourin, but now that they know, I can't be her anymore. One more thing to curse Miaka for. "Boku... Ore..." he whispered, trying to readjust to the masculine identifiers.  
He would get even with her, he swore. She had taken the things that were most precious- Hotohori and his identity as Kourin- away from him, so now all he had left was the fragile hope of vengeance.   
The water had settled enough for him to see the bitter expression that was on his face. Suddenly the only he wanted was to get out of his dress and into something else. He couldn't do much as a female. His lips curled upwards in an evil smile as he thought of the possibilities- after all, who knew what kind of trouble a rogue ShichiSeishi could make?  
  
END PRELUDE 


	2. Part Two

Quicksilver's Quill Offers  
Broken Willow   
standard disclaimers   
mbsilvana@yahoo.com  
Author's Note: This is for Nuriko fans... especially those who loved him from the very beginning and my darling new aniki, Suzaku no Seishi- my "Nuriko as a bad ass" story, if you please. Feedback, or else I won't publish anymore FY! ^_~.   
  
Part Two:   
  
Nuriko was thoroughly enjoying himself. Things were finally going the way he wanted them to. That idiot Kouji had managed to make himself scarce, and none of the other bandits had anything that even resembled a conscience, so that left Nuriko able to carry on exactly as he pleased. Right now Eiken was dragging the annoying miko off to his rooms, and Hotohori was in the main room serving the bandits.   
  
Nuriko's thoughts softened as he thought of his previous reason for existence, but he had to steal himself. They were going to meet soon- it was inevitable, and he was determined that it would be on his own terms. He braced himself, then headed off towards his fate.   
  
Hotohori, meanwhile, was not having a good time. He and Miaka had been separated, and right now he was stuck serving these men, many of whom were giving him assessing looks. He knew his beauty was astounding, but these weren't merely admiring glances- they were speculative. One of them was drunk enough to keep glomping his waist, and he hoped that he would be able to maintain the lie of his gender long enough to save Miaka.   
  
"Hee hee hee," he giggled in a falsetto, trying to maneuver towards the door- his sword was over there, and if he could get to it, he'd be able to take this whole room. He had no illusions of totally defeating the entire gang, but if he was careful enough, he could certainly be able to get himself and Miaka out of there, and maybe even located the other Seishi.   
  
He was about six feet from his objective when another of the bandits entered the room. The bandit was different from the rest- he appeared to be so slender that Hotohori could break him with one hand, and he was perhaps the prettiest man he'd ever seen. Something struck him as familiar, but he was unable to place him.   
  
"Good evening, my lord," Hotohori said, nodding his head as gracefully as one of his court princesses. "Can I get you anything?"   
  
The man laughed, and his voice was like bells on the wind. "Anything, heika-sama?" he asked, his eyes mocking.   
  
Hotohori almost had an apoplexy, which was not a good thing for an eighteen year old. "Nani?" he whispered, glancing around to make sure no one had heard. Luckily, the bandits were all too distracted by a card game to even notice. Then his eyes widened as he recognized the voice, and his heart leapt. "Nuriko!" he whispered, coming closer. "Did they catch you to? If we work together, we can get Miaka out of here!"   
  
"They didn't catch me," Nuriko replied, walking over to the sword that Hotohori had been gazing longingly at. "I guess you could say I caught them, in fact." He picked it up, and to Hotohori's astonishment, threw it into the stone ceiling, embedding it so deeply that only the hilt was visible. "Oh, my," Nuriko said. "Did I do that?"   
  
Hotohori had been confused enough- this was the first time he had seen his fellow Seishi in male clothing, and the way he had just walked in was enough to be bewildering, but now his actions made no sense. "Nani?" he asked.   
  
Nuriko smiled like a cat about to pounce upon a particularly plump mouse. He walked over to the table and sat himself down delicately on top of it, ignoring the men who immediately moved out of his range. "I-" he began, but was interrupted by a whirl of speed.   
  
Genrou had come just in time to see to see Nuriko sit on the table, missing the earlier incident with the sword. His quick mind assessed the situation rapidly, and decided that the lavender-haired girl must be one of the prisoners, and as the true leader of the bandits, it was his responsibility to get her away from the brown-haired interloper. The man's garments were of very fine weave, much too good for a common bandit. So that's Nuriko, he thought. Concentrating briefly, he felt his powers come to his call, and he raced through the room too fast for the normal eye to see, grabbing the girl and carrying her outside.   
  
Setting her down, he looked down at her. "Sorry for grabbing you like that. Didn't want anyone to do anything to you."   
  
Nuriko decided to play along. Looking up at the bandit, he lowered his eyelashes coyly, and adjusted his posture to a more retiring one. "Thank you, bandit-sama!" he fluttered, twisting his hands. "Those men were simply AWFUL! When they found out I had no money, they said- they said.... I could WORK my way through," Nuriko continued, artfully contriving a few tears. He placed his face in his hands, though was careful to make sure he could still see the red head's reaction.   
  
"Kuso, don't go all goose girl on me!" the man retorted, his expression frankly horrified. "Tell me where that other girl is, and we'll get the two of you outta here," the bandit promised.   
  
Nuriko pretended to go hysterical. While he was ranting about how close he'd come to losing his virtue, he thought quickly. I bet this is Genrou, he thought. The one Kouji keeps raving about, and the other men miss. I wonder where the rest of the guys are? They should be looking for me about now.   
  
Finally Genrou decided that he had had enough of the hysterical female. Raising his hand, he slapped her sharply, though not overly hard. "Damn it, calm down, will you? I'm getting you outta here."   
  
Nuriko had barely kept from returning the slap. "Hai," he muttered resentfully. Should be able to get rid of this guy. "Some guy named Eiken took her," he said.   
  
Genrou smacked a hand against his forehead. "Great, just great. Listen. You stay here, and no matter what happens, keep out of sight until I come back for you."   
  
Nuriko managed a teary nod, then watched as the bandit raced off. "Looks like things are going to get even more interesting," he mused aloud. "It was too easy, anyway," he said after a moment of further contemplation. "I'm happy- I get to REALLY torment Miaka."   
  
******  
  
Miaka was shrieking at the top of her lungs, and no one seemed to give a damn. The bandit Nuriko had "given" her to was ugly fat lump of lard, and he was laughing at her fear. His hands trailed over her breasts, as she decided that she was going to have to help herself. Raising a knee, she tried to land a good hit where it would really hurt, but Eiken was ready for that, and deflected it easily. "Listen, little girl- be nice to me and it won't hurt so much.... I might even tell you where Tasuki is, since you're the Suzaku no Miko," he said in his harsh voice.   
  
Her eyes widened eagerly. "Tasuki? Tasuki is here? But Nuriko...." she whispered.   
  
"Nuriko doesn't know, or else he'd probably have killed the guy. Are you sure you want that psycho Seishi around?" Eiken slobbered, and then his hands found the front of her blouse. Eager as she was to find all the Seishi, she was NOT going to do what Eiken wanted.   
  
Opening her mouth, Miaka let out an ear-piercing shriek, a shriek that was cut off by as a rush of wind filled the room- a man with bright red hair. Before she knew what had happened, she was on his shoulder, looking back at Eiken. "Hello, Eiken- long time, no see," the newcomer said with a pronounced accent. His hair was a fiery orange, and Miaka felt something click within her, but she was too distracted by the events around her to really notice.   
  
At that moment, the bandit whom the others had called Kouji raced in, trailed by Hotohori. The newcomer's eyes narrowed on the brown-haired man suspiciously, but Kouji heaved a relieved sigh. "Thank God you're ok," Kouji said to the man. "Why'd'ya have to go and do something so stupid, Genrou?"   
  
Genrou gave him a confused look. "I told ya I was going to save them, Kouji," he said. "I got the purple-haired one out, and now all I have to do is get rid of this one, and we're fine. What are you doing with that guy at your back?"   
  
"This GIRL is one of the prisoners that was captured. You can't tell a guy from a girl, can you?"   
  
"Apparently not," a husky alto came. Genrou whirled and met the amused eyes of the girl he had saved a few minutes earlier. To his surprise, everyone else in the room tensed, and Genrou saw something he had never seen on Kouji's face before- fear. "I appreciate your concern for me, but I don't need help. I think you're the one in trouble."   
  
Genrou was more confused then ever. "Then that guy isn't Nuriko?" he asked Kouji finally, pointing at the attractive man with long brown hair and excessively handsome face.   
  
The girl let out an amused laugh. "You really aren't that smart, are you, Genrou?" she asked. With a graceful hand she pulled the left side of her shirt down, revealing the mark of Suzaku on her skin, and proving, beyond any doubt, that she was a he. "Konnichi wa," he laughed. "We weren't properly introduced before- I'm Chou Ryuuen, but you can call me Nuriko."   
  
Genrou looked on in horror as the delicately built man walked farther into to the room. "It seems you have a little itty-bitty problem here," he said. "I'm rather unhappy about your return, you see, and my unhappiness has occasionally been known to be fatal." Nuriko pursed his lips melodramatically. "And you seem to know a little about what's actually going on here- I'm assuming Kouji's to blame for that." He smiled sweetly at the scarred bandit. "You and I will have a talk about that later," Nuriko promised.   
  
Kouji's swarthy complexion paled by about three shades, and it infuriated Genrou. "What makes you boss?" he demanded. "The old leader had me picked out to be the new Leader!"   
  
If anything, Nuriko's smile looked even more gentle. "Then where were you when he died? The men needed you then, and all that was here was that fat slob. I saw it as my duty to relieve Eiken of the position, for the good of everyone involved."   
  
Genrou's eyes were angry and sad at the same time. "The leader told me to leave to explore, to get the experience necessary so that when it was time, I knew more of the world then just Mount Reikoku. He was a young man! He shouldn't have died," Genrou said in a fiery voice.   
  
Something flickered in Nuriko's eyes, something that looked like sympathy, but it was quickly extinguished. "Really. Then I guess I have no choice but step aside," he said.   
  
Genrou's face became suspicious. From his experience, he knew nothing came for free. "And what will it cost to make you leave?" he asked.   
  
Nuriko paused, savoring the uneasy silence that awaited his answer. He could feel Hotohori's eyes on his face, but to his surprise he didn't feel his heart leap in his chest the way it used to. Before he had looked into Hotohori's hazel eyes and not felt the familiar wrench at his emotions. Well, well, well... he thought, this might be fun. "Not much. I just want to take what's mine with me," he said gently. "Since I'm the one who ordered the capture of these two, I might as well be the one to take care of them."   
  
Everything that was good in Genrou cried out against striking such a devil's bargain, but if he could regain control from Nuriko without a fight, so much the better. And these were merely prisoners- he had no responsibilities to them. "Very well," he agreed reluctantly. He unslung the girl from his shoulder and set her on the floor. "I advise you to do what he says- Kouji says he's insane," he said to the two prisoners.   
  
Nuriko shrugged at the implied insult. "Sanity is vastly overrated."   
  
Hotohori found himself being tied back up by the bandits. He was beyond confused at this point. Nuriko was acting decidedly nasty, and the fear-filled looks Miaka was casting at his fellow star were worrying.   
  
Soon he found himself being handed off to the feminine man. "Let's get going," Nuriko said, lifting Miaka over his shoulder with casual ease.   
  
Genrou, of course, wasn't going to let Nuriko waltz off that easily. Now that the slender man was burdened by a passenger, he saw it as the perfect opportunity to rescue the prisoners- after all, he wouldn't want the bandits to get the wrong idea- if he let Nuriko walk all over him, that didn't bode well for his reign as leader.   
  
Acting quickly, he withdrew a few papers, and flung them at Nuriko, enchanted them with an incantation. They transformed into huge wolves, all of which went for the man with the braid.   
  
Nuriko had been expecting something- from what the men had let slip about Genrou, the man was no milksop. What he HADN'T been expecting was magic, and his slow reaction gave Miaka enough time to get free.   
  
"Yamete! Don't kill him!" she cried, and she leapt away, hobbled by the ropes around her ankles.   
  
Nuriko grabbed one of the wolves by the scruff of the neck and flung it into the wall, causing it to transform back into paper. The other four, though, were in hot pursuit, and he gave an ironic shrug. "I know when I'm beat," he said as he started to run. "We're not done with each other, yet, though! Just wait, Miaka! The next time we meet, only one of us will walk away!"   
  
The group watched as Nuriko dashed through the window and into the night, with the hounds of hell on his feet.   
  
******  
  
Genrou had a world-class headache, and what really sucked was that he hadn't earned it by drinking. At long last, the thing he had feared the most had finally happened. The Suzaku no Miko had appeared, and she was seeking her Seishi.   
  
He would have been a fool not to know he was Tasuki; from the time he was little, he had had the "wing" mark flare whenever he became angry enough. He had not known what the mark actually meant until he had met the Reikoku bandits. The old bandit leader had been a man of learning, and once, during a raid, the mark had flared.   
  
Part of him was overjoyed to see the small girl wearing foreign clothes- it was though destiny was knocking on his door, screaming, "Wake up!". The larger part, though, was worried. He had responsibilities here, responsibilities he couldn't just abandoned to go traipsing about on a whim. If only the old leader, his mentor was still alive.... it'd be a different story then.   
  
Then there was the whole problem with Nuriko. Learning about the man who had been keeping the bandits in thrall for the last month was worrying, especially when Hotohori had hesitantly confirmed that Nuriko was a fellow Seishi.   
  
Hotohori was yet another concern. Until he had seen the chest, Genrou had positive the man was a woman. No man could possible be that beautiful. Then again, Nuriko was.... he wondered if the rest of the Seishi were as androgynous, and wondered what that said for him.   
  
Three of his men- Kouji, Kirin, and Sheng- were bringing him up to date as Hotohori and Miaka listened in. Miaka was stuffing her face, but between bites she'd contribute a word or two. "But here's my major concern- where the hell is the tessen?"   
  
"Tessen?" Miaka asked, though it sounded more like "Mum-mum?" because of the quantity of rice in her mouth.   
  
"It's an iron fan that's enchanted to spit out fire," Genrou explained. "The old leader had it."   
  
Kouji looked embarrassed. "Eiken had it, but when Nuriko came, he got it away rather easily."   
  
"Nani?" Genrou asked. "How did he ever manage to do that?"   
  
Hotohori sighed. "Nuriko is a seishi, and as such, possesses the power of Suzaku. A simple magical trinket wouldn't have been too much of a threat."   
  
Genrou snorted, but the men around the table shivered. "He's right," Kirin said. "I've never seen anyone so blasted strong in my life. He broke Tsu's arm without even trying, and he threw Eiken across the room like he was an acorn. The guy is fucking strong."   
  
"But what did he do with it?" Genrou asked in frustration.   
  
"Dunno," the three bandits chorused. "He said that since he didn't need it, he wasn't going to have it lying around for anyone to pick up- to keep us from mutinying or something like that."   
  
Smart man, Genrou conceded in his mind. "I guess he probably destroyed it then," he said wistfully. The old leader had meant for him to have it... damn it! It just wasn't fair.   
  
The six talked a while longer, but finally Sheng and Kirin passed out from the sake. Genrou ordered Kouji to escort Hotohori and Miaka to some place they could sleep safely, then went off to his rooms.   
  
Opening the doors, he was pleased to see that little had changed. Apparently they all had the wit to stay out of his rooms- and a good thing, too. Unlike most of the bandits, he preferred to keep his room sparsely furnish, with only the futon and a few weapons hanging on the wall for decoration. Sighing, he removed his jacket, folding it neatly. The chest of drawers in the corner contained all his worldly goods, and they weren't much. Quickly he removed his beads and pulled out his earrings, then finally began to undress.   
  
Just as he was removing his shirt, he felt something crawl down his spine. Like most warriors, he had developed what was called by some a "sixth sense" which warned him of possible danger. Whipping out a dagger from the top of his right boot, he whirled towards the window to face the threat.   
  
Nuriko was sitting there, playing with the tip of his braid. He wore a grave expression on his pretty face. Something in Genrou prevented him from calling out for help- all Nuriko had to do was use the tessen and poof! Roasted bandit. Provided Nuriko had the tessen still, but from what Genrou had learned, Nuriko was not the type to get rid of anything that could prove to be useful.   
  
"What do you want?" Genrou demanded, holding his dagger threateningly in front of him.   
  
The purple eyes blinked, and Nuriko's voice was gentle as he replied, "I have something to return to you."   
  
"Nani?" Genrou asked.   
  
"This," Nuriko answered, tossing the tessen to the surprised bandit, who caught it with his free hand.   
  
"The tessen!" Genrou exclaimed in surprised.   
  
"Yes," Nuriko replied quietly, making no move to leave.   
  
Genrou looked at the usurper in amazement, unable to reconcile this with his prior actions. Taking a few steps closer so their conversation wouldn't be overheard, Genrou came to a stop two feet away from Nuriko, trusting that the seishi wouldn't hurt him. For the first time, he looked at Nuriko's face closely, and was amazed at the bitter sorrow that darkened his eyes. "Why are you giving it back?" he asked softly.   
  
"Because I will deny no man what is his by right- you are the rightful leader of the Mount Reikoku bandits, and thus, the fan is yours." Nuriko gave him a hesitant smile and started to turn away, but then his eyes narrowed and he whipped a hand out rapidly and grabbed Genrou's right arm. Genrou winced as the seemingly delicate fingers locked around his upper arm like an iron shackle. "What's this?" he asked, touching the "wing" symbol that was staring to flare. "Wing... you're Tasuki...." His lips tightened and Genrou saw the insanity start to return to the purple depths.   
  
"So? You're Nuriko, big deal."   
  
Nuriko appeared to consider, and again the rational light returned. "So Miaka will be trying to recruit you," he said bitterly. "Don't let her- she'll betray you."   
  
"Betray? What do you mean?" Genrou asked.   
  
"She's a selfish bitch who gives no thought of other people," Nuriko replied. Tears started to form at the corners of his eyes, tears which he ruthlessly suppressed.   
  
Now, Genrou was no master of the art of observation, but he could tell something was wrong with Nuriko's perceptions. Miaka might be a glutton, but she was not unconcerned for others. Genrou knew enough not to try to reason with Nuriko, so that left trying to comfort him or beating the crap out of him. He'd seen a few of the walls Nuriko had broken, and realized that comforting was the only options left. Now.... this would have been fine, had he had any ability in this field. But Genrou was a blunt bandit.   
  
"Now, it's seems like you've got something wrong- did she kill your sister or something?" Genrou asked, trying to joke Nuriko out of his grim mood. Wrong question.   
  
Nuriko's eyes filled with tears and his grip tightened, affecting the blood flow in Genrou's arm. "She might as well have! Thanks to her, Kourin is no more!" he wept, tears slipping freely down his pale cheeks.   
  
Genrou was unable to keep from flinching. "Kuso! So that little girl isn't as sweet as she looks!"   
  
Nuriko nodded emphatically. "Don't trust her, Tasuki. Whatever you do, don't trust her." With that, he cast a final look at the bandit, releasing his arm. Nuriko went out the same way he had entered, through the window, vanishing into the night as mysteriously as he had appeared..   
  
Tasuki stared after him, wondering what to do. Unfortunately, his sleep-deprived body demanded rest, and he had little choice but to comply. With a sigh, he threw himself down on his pallet and fell into an uneasy slumber, his dreams plagued by wolves and fire and women who were really men.   
  
END PART TWO  
Ok, be good and fill out the FB form. I have other projects, so I need to see where this one fits in with the rest. 


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